SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) — Assuming the 49ers win on Sunday, fans wanting to cheer on the Niners in the January 19th NFC Championship Game in Seattle will not be able to buy tickets through the Seahawks, as the team is restricting sales to only zip codes in Washington, Oregon, Montana, Idaho, Alaska, Hawaii, and parts of Canada.

Tickets go on sale Monday, and California residents can still purchase tickets through the secondary ticket market like NFL Ticket Exchange, Stub Hub and others, or with a friend who has a credit card billed to an address in the Pacific Northwest.

Banning California (and Carolina) addresses from purchasing tickets to CenturyLink Field protects the team’s “12th Man” advantage, but also creates a bit of an image problem for the team, suggesting they can’t survive on skill alone, according to 49er faithful.

“I’m sure they’re not concerned about the appearance, but it still looks kind of weak,” writes NinersNation.com.

The Seahawks ticket page offers no explanation of the ban, just simply stating, “Tickets will be available to fans with a billing address in WA, OR, MT, ID, AK, HI and the Canadian provinces of British Columbia and Alberta.”